Gleeson comeback a work in progress

THE last few months have been kind to Keith Gleeson - in complete contrast to the earlier part of the season.

Gleeson had to battle a serious shoulder injury and a career threatening double leg break, but is on the verge of helping Leinster to a Celtic League and Heineken Cup double.

He even has a decent chance of making it to New Zealand to show he has lost none of the mettle that earned him 23 caps.

"I have really enjoyed my rugby this year; it has been a long road, almost 18 months of injury and frustration, but this year in November and December, the old form came back. Once I was over the frustration of knowing whether I could play top class rugby again, I have really enjoyed myself again," he said.

Gleeson can speak on behalf of many players in the modern era whose careers have been threatened. He survived, but admitted that it was a long, lonely road to work his way back.

"The biggest frustration was not knowing. All the questions were raised in my head.

"Would I train again; would I play again; would I be any good if I did play again? When you get to a certain level, you don't want to reach below it just for the sake of it. So yes, there were a lot of things going through my head," he said.

He had encouragement from certain quarters, including his doctor, Bill Quinlan: "Particularly in relation to my leg beak, he told me that I would get back there but warned me that it would take time. It was a complicated injury, but suffice to say I have climbed that hill; I've enjoyed the hard work leading me back to fitness, and I'm enjoying myself now since I returned."

Had his return coincided with a loss of form in the Leinster team, it might have been a really tragic couple of years for Gleeson. He is grateful that the squad kept the pot boiling.

"I came back at a time when the rest of the squad had done a lot of groundbreaking work. Now the important thing is that we remind ourselves that we haven't actually won anything yet. We have, though, given ourselves a wonderful opportunity; we're leading the Celtic League at the moment, but we recognise that Ulster have a game in hand; we're in the semi-final of the Heineken Cup, so we have great opportunities in front of us," he said.

"We're in the perfect position going into the last six weeks of the season; we're in contention to win the two major trophies, and nobody could ask for anything better than that.

"If we perform in the next six weeks, the memories could stay with us for the rest of our lives. A lot of teams would love to be in the same position as we now find ourselves."

Gleeson insisted that his immediate focus was on tonight's Celtic League clash with Llanelli, though the Heineken Cup clash with Munster is a mouthwatering prospect as well.

"I know more than anyone that you can't look beyond the next game. This is a Celtic League weekend and we cannot afford to let our concentration drop but there is, of course, a lot of excitement about playing another Irish side in the semi-final of the Heineken Cup.

"Once you reach the play-off stages of the Heineken Cup, you're going to be up against top quality teams. They don't come more top quality than Munster, but they're no different to anyone that we might meet at this stage of a tournament. You know that you've got to perform on the day, and possibly get an element of luck throughout the game; at least at stages of the game.

"We have played Munster so many times over a number of years that we know every time we step on the field we have a major battle on our hands. It's going to be a tough, physical game; a more difficult game in the sense that there is always a bit more riding on matches between two great rivals. It's a dream game from Ireland's point of view; one team will be in the final. The country will be split, although I'm not quite so sure in what ratio, between who they want to win. Yet the fact that an Irish team will compete in the decider in Cardiff will surely be good for everyone over here.

"It's going to be a difficult match to play in, a difficult result to cope with, come what may, and it will come down to a battle of wills, to who wants it the most."